The 20 most meaningful jobs in America, ranked

• There are some jobs in which nearly every professional says they feel that they make the world a better place.
• Most of these are in education and health, according to a Payscale survey.
• GED teacher and education director topped the list.

If your goal in life is to make the world a better place, you should probably pursue a job in education or healthcare.

Three of the top 20 most feel-good jobs in America, according to a 2017 PayScale study, fell into one of those two categories.

To compile its latest list, PayScale asked more than 500,000 professionals whether they feel their work makes the world a better place, and ranked professions based on the percentage of people in each of those jobs who answered “yes.”

"Many people hope to find work that they find meaningful, but the secret is that you can find purpose in a variety of professions," Lydia Frank, vice president of content strategy at PayScale, told Business Insider. "And, you don't always have to sacrifice a good paycheck in order to have a positive impact on the world."

Here are the top 20 jobs where people feel they're making an impact. There were several ties, so our ranking starts at 15.

Jacquelyn Smith contributed to a previous version of this article.

15. Counselor

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.0%

Median salary: $40,500

14. Self-enrichment teacher (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.1%

Median salary: $31,800

14. Physical therapist assistant (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.1%

Median salary: $46,900

13. Physician assistant

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.1%

Median salary: $91,300

12. Postsecondary health teacher

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.1%

Median salary: $70,700

11. Funeral director

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.3%

Median salary: $45,000

10. Dentist

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.5%

Median salary: $137,300

9. High school teacher (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.6%

Median salary: $46,100

9. Physician or surgeon (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.6%

Median salary: $205,700

8. Veterinarian (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.7%

Median salary: $71,500

8. Occupational therapist assistant (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.7%

Median salary: $53,000

7. Firefighter

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 97.9%

Median salary: $63,300

6. Health care practitioner (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 98.0%

Median salary: $95,600

6. Therapist (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 98.0%

Median salary: $64,300

5. Residential advisor

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 98.3%

Median salary: $32,500

4. Optometrist

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 98.7%

Median salary: $103,400

3. Psychologist

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 98.9%

Median salary: $60,300

2. Clergy

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 99.8%

Median salary: $46,900

1. Education director (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 100%

Median salary: $36,900

1. GED teacher (tie)

Percent of professionals who feel their job makes the world better: 100%

Median salary: $41,300